Coraline
by Est. 98
Summary: After the Gauntlet, Cora moves away.


**A/N: I dunno. I just really didn't like how Cora was portrayed as being a heartless beoch in the Black Book, since she ditched Jonah and Broderick. And then she wasn't mentioned. Until, like, ever. And then this happened. I mean, you can only have so many Isabels' and Wyomings' in a book series, ne? **

* * *

**CORALINE**

* * *

_"Do you have any children?"_

_"No."_

_"Were you married?"_

_"No."_

_"Where are you from?"_

_"… California."_

* * *

Coraline Janus Wiard moved to San Francisco on September 30th. She moved into a small bungalow, three blocks away from the nearest coffee shop, two blocks away from the high school, and one block away from the Music House of Jane Hill. It was a pretty little bungalow, covered with ivy and flowers and bright, happy things. She fell in love immediately.

When Coraline first entered her new home, she saw that the previous owners had left a newspaper on the kitchen counter. She picked it up. The headline read:

**Jonah Wizard Settles in at New Home in Orange County**

There was a picture of the teen, wearing a baseball cap and smiling at the cameras.

She threw away the paper.

* * *

_Hello. You have reached Coraline Janus Wizard. I am currently not available. Please leave your name, occupation, and contact number after the beep, or call again later. Thank you._

Beep.

"Mom?" he paused.

"Look, I know that you don't really want to talk. I know that you don't want to hear from me. I disappointed you and everything, down in the Gauntlet. I'm sorry, Mom. I really am. I know that the Clue Hunt meant so much to you, really, I did. I tried so hard… it's just, Mom, I really… I… these people- Amy, Dan, Hamilton, the Kobr- I mean, the Kabras', everyone… their lives just meant so much more to me than the Clue Hunt, or the Master Serum… I would never have forgiven myself if I just let them go like that… I can't… I just really want my Mom back and everything, and I'm really sorry I disappointed you, and I swear… I'll be a better son. I promise..." It was all very rushed.

A pause. Then, " I love you Mom."

End Message.

Coraline Janus Wiard deleted the call two minutes after hearing it.

* * *

"I just wanted to welcome you to the neighbourhood," the woman said. She was young; maybe mid-twenties, with long auburn hair and brown eyes, and was holding a small parcel covered in yellow daisies, painted with a delicate hand. Vaguely, Coraline thought of a woman she once knew, a woman named Hope, but pushed the faint, shattered memories out of her mind.

Coraline managed a small smile, and politely said, "Thank you very much for your consideration. Would you like to come in?"

The auburn-haired woman laughed and shook her head, "No, I'm afraid not. I have to get to work. My shift starts in five minutes. I just wanted to take the time to bring a small welcome gift to my new neighbour."

"Oh? Where do you work?"

"Just a few blocks away- at the Music House of Jane Hill. It was named after my grandmother, whom, I'm quite proud to say, I share a name with," Jane smiled. She seemed rather proud of her lineage.

"That's very interesting," Coraline said, in all earnest. Despite the caution stirring in her mind, she decided that Jane Hill, of the Music House of Jane Hill was alright.

"I'm glad you think so," Jane said pleasantly.

Then she left.

When Coraline later opened the parcel, she found a small, chocolate cake covered in crimson flowers and decorated with tiny musical notes.

* * *

_"Did you like it there?"_

_"Pardon me?"_

_"Did you like it, back wherever you came from? Your home?"_

_"I don't really have a home, Jane. Not even now."_

_"I meant back where you used to live, at the very least."_

_"The view was lovely."_

_"You lived near the sea?"_

_"Near the Hollywood Sign."_

* * *

The next time Coraline met Jane was when she walked past the Music House of Jane Hill. She heard music.

Jane was playing the piano.

_River Flows in You_

She was seated in front of a grand piano, a magnificent old thing carved to near perfection. Her fingers skimmed over the notes, stringing phrases together, like magic, weaving a delicate vine of sound. Coraline noticed that her eyes were closed, and her body arched and rocked with the music beneath her fingertips.

Coraline entered.

"You play beautifully."

Jane smiled, "Thank you, Coraline. I rather like this piece. It's… whimsical." She saw Coraline's eyes train on the ivory keys, almost like a panthers about to stalk its prey, and she saw, for a moment, longing in the dark orbs. She smiled.

"You like music, Coraline?"

Her answer was hesitant. "I do. But I like artwork more." Her eyes trailed the orange walls, faded with age, but attractive, nonetheless. Several paintings were arranged on the far wall, near the storage room. She got up to examine it, her heels clicking against the linoleum floor. It was a vibrant, colorful, energetic piece. It was robust. It was alive with motion. Vaguely, a name fell on the tip of her tongue, a voice of recognition, but she ignored it.

Jane walked up beside her. "Do you like it, Coraline?"

Coraline paused.

"I painted it."

* * *

To: Coraline Janus Wiard

From: Broderick Wizard

_Cora, I realize that you do not wish to communicate with us, and that you are angry and disappointed with our son, but please, see reason. You have not answered any of our calls, mine or your son's. I want to be able to talk to my wife, Cora. And your son needs a mother. Please answer._

To: Broderick Wizard

From: Coraline Janus Wiard

_I haven't any idea of what you are talking about. I do not have a husband, nor have I a son. This must be some type of mistake. Please don't contact me again. Thank you._

_-Coraline Janus Wiard_

She blocked him three minutes later.

* * *

_"You are an artist?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Professional?"_

_"Yes." A pause._

_"You were famous."_

_"Once."_

_"Once?"_

_"I was."_

_"But not anymore."_

_"I don't believe so, no."_

* * *

"_I shall be telling this with a sigh; somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." _

"Robert Frost, 1920. Mountain Interval."

"You are surprisingly well-versed, Jane."

"Thank you. My grandmother once insisted that I was a descendant of his, that we were distantly related, but I am not so sure. I just like poetry."

"And music, Jane?"

"Oh yes, that too."

* * *

Coraline breathed in, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart and her pounding head. Her fingers trembled slightly, hovering over the buttons on her phone. Slowly, she dialed every number individually, a code that she'd memorized over years or use.

…4...6…2…3…9…9…

Ringing. She waited. She held the phone up to her ear.

"Hello?"

Silence.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

She hung up.

* * *

"Come over for tea?" Jane asked one day. She stood on Coraline's porch, patiently waiting for a response.

"Tea?" Coraline asked, not looking up from her painting. She was bent over the kitchen table, gently painting clouds into her canvas. Jane entered, taking off her shoes, just as Coraline had always politely inquired her to do.

"Oh yes. I have tea every Saturday, at 4:00. Tea is always at four."

Coraline chuckled softly. "I've heard that before. Somewhere."

"Konigsburg. A View from Saturday. Award Winner."

Coraline delicately arched an eyebrow, and said, "I suppose you're distantly related to her also?"

"So I've been told. Your painting is lovely."

"Why thank you."

It was a picture of a boy and a man, both dark-skinned, both tall and thin. They were standing on a hill, overlooking a valley. There were clouds in the sky, white, dotted, like cotton candy. And there were birds singing.

"Did you know them?"

"Once. A long, long time ago. A lifetime ago."

* * *

Winter turned to spring.

* * *

Spring turned to summer.

* * *

She saw the headline first:

**Jonah Wizard Controversy: Was that kiss real?**

The picture showed a dark-skinned clinging on to a larger, stronger blond. She knew him. She knew them both.

Coraline ignored the article.

* * *

To: Coraline Janus Wiard

From: Broderick W.

_Cora. He nearly died yesterday. Are you happy now?_

To: Broderick W.

From: Coraline Janus Wiard

_No. _

_**She didn't block him this time.**_

* * *

She was having tea again with Jane Hill. Jane was wearing dark eyeliner and mascara, which framed her chocolate brown eyes. Her eyes looked so familiar.

Coraline knew those eyes. She'd seen them before; a smaller, younger, darker boy had the exact same eyes as Jane Hill. She'd known the boy.

Once.

* * *

_"Are you happy here Coraline?"_

_"Excuse me?"_

_"I asked, are you happy here? In San Francisco?"_

_A pause. Then-_

_"I'm not exactly sure."_

* * *

She dialed one more time.

He picked up at the third ring. "Hello?"

Coraline closed her eyes, trying to quell the words threatening to float up from her throat, flutter through her lips.

"Hello? Anyone there? Who is this?" He'd grown up. His voice was deeper, more mature. Coraline tried to open her mouth. Then she closed it. Then opened it again, and-

"Hello."

A pause. Silence. Then-

"Mom?"

"…I love you." Then she hung up. Again.

* * *

Tea again. Black, green, pink dotted with rose petals. Smoking hot, freezing cold.

"Is there something you're not telling me, Coraline?"

"Cora."

"Pardon me?"

"My name is Cora. Cora Wizard. Not Coraline Wiard. Wizard."

Jane smiled. A pause. A moment. A lifetime passed. Then-

"His name's Jonah."

"Hmm?"

"My son. His name is Jonah Wizard." And then she knew.

"Do you have any children?"

"Yes."

"Were you married?"

"Yes."

"Where are you from?"

"… California."

And she smiled.

* * *

_-Le Fin_

* * *

**A/N: All I have to say is that Coraline reminds me of that movie. You know, the one with the door and the mom and the dad and the buttons? 0_0**

**Review?**


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